The Garden Shedde

If you have an outdoor garden, you’ve most likely experienced unwanted guests nibbling on your vegetables and plants. Rabbits, squirrels, and even cats can do harm to gardens by eating the plants and leaves. If you need to deter critters in your garden, there are natural ways to do so, without harming your plants or the animals.

Lay citronella candles throughout your garden to deter cats, as they dislike a strong citrus smell. These candles may need to be replaced after a hard rain, or during a strong heat wave, as they will most likely melt. An alternative would be to lay orange and lemon peels throughout your garden. Another natural deterrent is cayenne pepper. Sprinkle cayenne pepper throughout your garden to deter most animals from chewing on your plants. Just be sure to wash your vegetables before consuming them so as not to deter yourself! Finally, place mothballs in old panty house and hang throughout your garden to deter rabbits and squirrels. There is no need to harm critters that find their way into your garden. Simply use these natural deterrents to ward away unwanted visitors.

While you might think that it is easy to plant a tree there are a few things that you need to think about before you start. The first one is about the type of tree you would like to plant; is the tree a native tree to your area? If not, you will want to talk to a gardener at your local nursery to make sure the type of tree you have chosen will do well in the region or area you live in. The next thing is to find out how big the tree will be once it has reached its full growth potential and make sure the place you have chosen will accommodate the future growth. There’s nothing like having to cut down a tree that is now interfering with your house, shed or fence after a few years.

Once you have determined everything is good to go dig a hole that’s about a inch shallower than the distance from the bottom of the root ball to where the trunk starts to flare and about three to four times the width of the root ball. Place a water hose in the bottom of the hole and place the root ball on top of it in the hole. Make sure someone is there to tell you if the tree is straight or not and fill in the hole with good dirt. Turn the water on very low and watch for it to come back out of the hole (it could be a few minutes). Pull the hose out and you are done!

I am a fan of sports. I like all sorts of professional sports, including those performed at the Olympics. In high school I played basketball and threw discus for the track and field team. So when it comes to sports, I’m pretty sure I know what I’m talking about. And the most important part of playing a sport is balance. If fact, balance is one of the most important things we can master to help us with just about everything we do; inside and outside.

If you lack balance than it’s hard to play any sport. It’s also difficult to garden and some find it hard to play with children. Many things affect our balance such as excess weight, weak muscles and injuries and we are pretty much useless without it. Another thing that I find for many is life is not as enjoyable when you struggle with balance. It’s hard to skip and move freely when you don’t feel in control of your body. One of the best things you can do to help improve your balance along with weight control, strength training and being careful is doing yoga. Many people find it really does help them find their center and balance physically, mentally and spiritually.

More and more people are moving in the direction of buying practical gifts for their friends and family. There is nothing more practical than some great gardening gifts for those families and individuals that are starting to or wanting to grow their own food. The great thing is you can get something as simple as hand tools to a larger and more complex garden gifts that might include a raised bed or even a greenhouse.

The most important thing to consider is the skill set of the person you are giving the gift to. You may also want to ask them what they are lacking or what they would like to add in their garden this next spring. There are some things that are organic specific and others that are for general gardening. Whatever you buy for the gardener in your life, make it practical. You can also give a gift to encourage growing their own food as well. One of the best things to use to get stared is a raised bed and you can get organic beds or beds made from recycled milk jugs that both help the environment as well as give someone a way to grow their own food.

I recently had the pleasure of hearing a local chiropractor speak to a group of enthusiastic gardeners about what he sees as their number one problem and how to prevent it from happening.  Like so many other things we do, it seems like our backs are put at risk by our activities in the yard and garden more than any other part of our bodies.  Since the back is supported by our core muscles and those muscles are in the stomach, we tend to forget that those sit ups we hate to do are causing more than our bellies to expand.

So beyond the “eat right and exercise” mantra there are a couple of thing you can do to help prevent a back injury, no matter if you are in top shape or not.  One of the most important things is to always stretch before you start working.  This is more than just touching your toes.  You will need to really stretch and bend and really warm up your body and back for some bending.  Another thing you can do is use knee pads or one of the garden seats you see today to help take the stress off your back and lower body.  I have also heard of a fellow using an exercise ball out in the yard for additional support.  Whatever it takes; you owe it to yourself to protect your back from injury.

There is something about digging in the dirt that brings tremondous joy to many of us.  There is an anticipation of spring at this time of the year that enables you to withstand the rest of the winter months.  The day may be bleak and dreary but you are able to see the sunshine threough the blue days and imagine the blooms and smells of flowers and herbs and the vegetables you plant.

Some of us are lucky enough to live in climates where you can garden almost year round and others have built or bought greenhouses so they can take advantage of some things the average gardener might not be able to.  However, that never deters someone that is in love with the earth and what she brings each and every year.  I hope you are inspired to dream about the sunny days ahead and the bounty your garden will give you this year.  We should all be able to experience the joy of gardening year round whether we can actually garden all year or not.

There are many people across the US that live in areas that have been and are still affected by drought situations.  To save water and follow local laws, many of us just stop watering our yards and plants and watch as they whither away and bake in the sun with little or no water.

While there is little you can do about some things, there are plants that you can plant in your yard that need little water to not only survive, but to thrive and bloom.  You can plant a water conservation garden and maintain a beautiful garden landscape even in drought conditions.  With a little thought and direction, we don’t have to sacrifice our yards completely in order to save and conserve water.

I remember growing up watching my two grandmother’s in their respective gardens.  They lived in totally different parts of the state but had gardening and the local garden clubs in common.  One of the favorite items that they both used was trellises.  This was also the first time I had ever seen trellises used in a vegetable garden for things like cucumbers and cantaloupe.

While one grandmother used hers mostly for flowers in her flower garden, my mother’s mother would place a trellis parallel to the ground and stake it about 4 to six inches from the ground.  This let the cucumber and cantaloupe plants roam freely throughout the trellis close to the ground and since it was staked up high enough, the fruit would either develop on top of the slats or underneath them.  I don’t think I have ever seen this anywhere else but I know it works in my garden.

Pretty much every state has an extension agency either through one or more universities and/or at the state level that can help you with your specific garden questions for your area.  Many diseases and insect issues are local or regional to your area so it is great to have this resource when you have a question that your friendly neighborhood gardening store may not be able to answer.

Another wonderful service that is provided for little or no money is soil testing.  This can take a little time so make sure you send your soil in long before you are ready to plant.  They can help you diagnose any potential problem that may be soil related and give you information as to what your soil may lack for optimum growth potential.  Most of the extension services have an online presence and you can see when and where classes are held that may cover one of your many gardening interests.  Don’t hesitate to contact your extension service and ask as many questions as you have; that’s what they are there for.

Ground cover works to insulate bulbs from the quick freezes and thaws that happen throughout the winter.  They also create a great backdrop for flowering bulbs during the spring and summer months as well as keeping mud from splashing up on the plants to keep their colors vibrant and intact.  The ground cover looks great throughout the year and covers up any ills in your yard or garden.

Some great choices in ground cover include pachysandra, creeping euonymous, ajuga, vinca and various ivy selections.  Planting cover choices that will bloom at the same time your bulbs bloom will give your yard that blast of color you normally see in the magazines.  Talk to your nursery professional to find out the best combinations in your area.